Christmas with the Grangers
by Penelope Perrot
Summary: Hermione takes pity on Draco and invites him to her house for the holidays. Little do they know that this one Christmas will change their lives forever.
1. Chapter 1: A Surprise Invitation

_Just thought I'd do a little something for Christmas. I'll be taking a break from _The Monster Who Loved a Mudblood_ for a while to finish this one. Enjoy and happy Christmas!_

**Chapter 1: A Surprise Invitation**

Hermione sighed and wrapped her scarf around her neck. She knew it would be frigid outside. Glancing up at the large clock hanging on the wall in the Gryffindor common room, she rolled her eyes. Where on earth were Ron and Harry? They were supposed to see her off and it was almost time for her to be going.

At that moment, however, the two boys came walking around the corner from the direction of their dorm.

"There you are!" Hermione cried, running over to embrace each of them. "I'll miss you both so much!" It was Christmas break of their first year at Hogwarts. Hermione was heading home to see her parents for the holidays. As much as she wished to remain at Hogwarts, it would be wonderful to see her parents again. She had been a bit homesick.

"We'll miss you too Hermione," Harry smiled.

"Yeah, yeah. Now can you release us before we lose all source of oxygen?" Ron gasped.

"Good to see you'll miss me too!" Hermione pretended to be hurt.

"No, I'm gonna miss you too…but just a little bit!"

Hermione laughed. "Sounds good, then. Well, I guess I'd better go. Happy Christmas!" Hermione smiled as Ron and Harry turned and walked away, trying to imagine what the next couple weeks would be like without them around.

As she was walking toward the entrance hall, she heard a sound. It sounded like...someone crying. Curious, she listened harder, then turned in the direction it was coming from. Finding nothing and no longer able to hear the sound, Hermione turned around and started walking back in fear that she might miss the carriages.

But then she heard it again, louder this time—a sob. Definitely a sob. She spun around and headed right towards the dungeons. Sitting in a corner of a small dark passageway was Draco Malfoy.

He heard her coming and looked up angrily. "Think it's funny, Granger? Seeing a Malfoy cry?"

Hermione wasn't sure what to think. Here was stuck-up spoiled bully Malfoy, crying? As much as she had always hated him, she couldn't help feeling sorry for him. It was the Christmas holidays and no one deserved to be in tears, not even Malfoy.

"No…it's not funny at all…" She sank down to her knees and sat next to him. His eyes widened in shock, but he didn't say anything. "What's wrong?"

Draco himself didn't know why, but he decided to tell her everything. "I just received this letter from my stupid father." He showed her a crumpled-up parchment in his hand.

"What did he say?"

"He's cancelling our Christmas plans. The one time a year that our family actually feels almost like a family, when my parents actually take time to notice me. The time of year I've been looking forward to ever since I started school here. I know it's silly, but…Christmas won't be Christmas without the wizard carols and the presents and the whole family gathered around the fire. I spend every year trying to get my parents to give me half as much attention as they do…other 'more important' matters, but they just ignore me. At Christmas, however, we're a family again.

But this year Father's too busy with business matters and such. He told me not to return home. To just stay here at Hogwarts, alone. No one from my year is staying. No one! I…I don't like being alone." He looked at Hermione with wide eyes. "Go ahead, say it's stupid."

She stared at him for a long moment before answering in a whisper, "It's not stupid." Forgetting that they were supposed to be enemies, she went on, "I understand what you mean. I don't know what I would do if I didn't get to go home and see my family for the holidays. Christmas is a wonderful holiday, and you shouldn't be ashamed of knowing that."

"Really?" Draco was shocked. None of his "friends" ever really took the time to hear him out or give his opinions much thought, so he'd given up of ever sharing his feelings with them. But his enemy, this Mudblood Hermione Granger, cared?

She nodded. "I wish I could help you, but how?" She thought hard for a second. "I know! You can stay with us for Christmas!" She didn't know what made her suggest it, and immediately wished she could take it back. Hopefully he would be appalled by the idea and turn down her suggestion.

"Normally I would refuse the help of anyone of impure blood, but…I wouldn't mind a Christmas with a normal family for once." Draco didn't even know what he was saying. Why would he lower himself to even talk to a Mudblood, much less stay with one? "But your parents-they don't even know who I am."

She wasn't going to take it back, for it would be rude. And, she didn't know why, but the idea suddenly seemed a little less miserable to her, so she responded, "My parents love visitors! Besides, my mom already said in a letter that I could invite Harry and Ron to stay with us, but they had other plans. Anyway, they wouldn't mind me bringing a friend to spend the holidays with us."

They both gasped as they realized she'd just called them friends. That was ridiculous of course, they were far from friends. Anything but. Enemies, most definitely.

"I mean…er…"

But Draco interrupted, "It's okay. And thank you, I-I would really appreciate that."

"It's settled then. Here…" She reached for the end of her scarf and used it to dab at his tears.

He didn't react as her smooth skin touched his face, but let her wipe away his tears.

"We should be going, Malfoy."

"Very well." The two rose and walked toward the Entrance Hall. As all the other carriages were already occupied, so they sat together. Hermione turned to Draco to start making pleasant conversation, but Draco shook his head.

He whispered out of the corner of his mouth, "Just because we're spending the holidays together doesn't mean people need to start thinking we're friends. Not a word of this to anyone."

"Fine," she whispered back angrily, and turned to watch as the castle faded from view, trying not to look at Draco. _This_ was how he repaid her for her kindness? As she thought about it though, she realized he was right. She didn't want Ron and Harry to find out either. The last thing they needed was for people to start getting ideas.

They sat in separate compartments on the train ride home. Hermione sat with Parvati and Padma Patil and Lavender Brown who were all going on about how much fun they were all going to have over the holidays because the Browns were going to go visit the Patils for Christmas.

Hermione tried to tune out of most of their chatter and left herself to thinking about what her Christmas was going to be like. Why had she even suggested it? Of course deep down she knew why. She'd had a little crush on him since the beginning of term. She didn't really know why. It was completely irrational and silly, but she hadn't been able to get rid of it.

It had started that first night she'd seen him. He was just so good looking! Of course, as time went on she realized that he was a total jerk, but she always found herself pretending that somewhere underneath all his outward callousness, he had a good heart.

By this point, she didn't think of him as much and she had managed to tame her crush substantially, but still, sometimes…she knew she liked him.

They pulled into the station several hours later, and Hermione decided it was time to find Draco. It took her a few minutes to find his compartment, and he was the only one left in it when she found him.

"Come along, Malfoy. We mustn't keep my parents waiting."

"Are you sure about this, Granger? I don't want to impose..."

"It'll be fine. Come on."

As they stepped out onto the platform, Draco looked around, searching for the Grangers.

"What are you looking for?" Hermione asked as she made her way toward the wall that led to Platforms 9 and 10.

"Your parents, of course."

"They're Muggles, remember? I have to meet them in the Muggle part of the station, _of course_," she said mimicking his overly-confident tone.

"Oh yeah…" He followed her along in silence as they pushed their carts with their trunk and such through the wall and found themselves standing in a very different looking part of the station.

"There they are! You wait here," Hermione said excitedly as she ran off to hug her parents.

"Hermione dear! How have you been?" Her mother tightly embraced her.

"Simply wonderful, Mummy! I can't wait to tell you all about it, but first I need to introduce you to someone. You know how you said I could invite a friend to stay with us for the holidays? Well, I brought someone…" She motioned towards Draco who was leaning against a wall, looking at the Muggles passing by with a sour face. She rolled her eyes, walked over and grabbed his arm, dragging him over to where her parents stood.

Her parents looked a little taken aback by the boy whose arm their daughter was clutching. Was this the type of friends she'd made at that Wizarding school? Were all wizards like this?

"Hello, dear. You must be Harry? Or Ron perhaps?" Mrs. Granger forced a smile.

Draco looked disgusted to be mistaken for either of them, but upheld his good Malfoy manners. "No ma'am. My name is Draco Malfoy." He inwardly cringed at speaking to a Muggle in such a way, but decided he would have to get over it. He was stuck here after all.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Draco." Mr. Granger held out his hand. Draco shook it uncertainly. "Shall we go get loaded up in the car?"

As her parents began walking toward the exit of the station, Hermione grabbed Draco's shoulder and pulled him around to face her.

"What do you want, Mudblood?"

"I...Mudblood?"

He rolled his eyes. "Nevermind. You were saying?"

"If you are going to spend Christmas with us, you're going to act like a decent human being for once. None of this 'Muggles are stupid and they should worship me because I'm a Malfoy' stuff."

"I never said that!"

"Anyway, I know it's hard for you, but can you try to be nice?"

He looked at her for a minute, not sure what to think. How had he gotten himself into this mess? _She's being nice, Draco. You should return the favor!_ But she was a Mudblood! _Who cares? Just be nice and enjoy Christmas._

"You…you're right. I'm sorry."


	2. Chapter 2: Muggle Things

_Hey, everyone! Thanks for the reviews. This is a really fun one to write, even though it's really cheesy and improbable... Anyway, I'm working hard to have it finished by Christmas, so wish me luck!_

_Oh, and some free hot cocoa to whoever can name the movie the quote that Hermione says is from!_

**Chapter 2: Muggle Things**

The half hour ride home was almost completely silent. Mr. and Mrs. Granger were worrying about their daughter and trying to think about dental things instead. Hermione was completely regretting letting Draco come along.

Draco on the other hand, was busy looking around and taking in the Muggle things that surrounded him. They were in a car, which of course he'd ridden in once or twice before. The Ministry often loaned them to his father. However, they never ceased to amaze him. Then there was the thing called a "mobile phone" that Mr. Granger was talking into and that "motorcycling"-thing they had just passed. Everywhere he looked he saw more Muggle technology and devices. He tried not to let them astound him—they were just Muggles' silly replacements for magic, after all—but he was failing. It was truly incredible what they could do without magic.

He turned and saw Hermione looking at him funny, but didn't have time to ask why as they were approaching her home. He looked up at her house and his jaw dropped. It was huge, almost as large as his own!

They had just driven through a gate guarded with an electronic keypad and were now driving up the long driveway. The house—or mansion, rather—was old-fashioned with grey stones lining the outside. A well-tended garden spread across the front of it, filled with all kinds of flowers of beautiful pink, blue, and purple hues. The mahogany French doors were surrounded by lovely ivy, climbing up the walls toward the high roof which was strung with glittering Christmas lights, for it was starting to get dark.

When Hermione saw Draco's expression she laughed out loud, then said in her very best Julie Andrews voice, "Close your mouth, please, Draco. We are not a codfish."

He closed his mouth, but turned his gaze to her in confusion.

"Oh, I forget you wizards don't get such references. It's from a movie. Anyway, just because we're a Muggle family doesn't mean we can't have a nice house. Dentists make a fair amount of money, thank you very much." She wasn't about to tell him about the real reason they had such a large home.

"Yeah, yeah, okay."

"Let's go in, shall we?" Her parents had already gotten out of the car and were unpacking their things.

Draco nodded, then opened his door and climbed out. He went to grab his things, only to find that Mr. Granger and another man were carrying the trunks inside. "Who's that?"

Hermione, who had come to join him outside of the car, covered her face with her hands and groaned. She whispered something incomprehensible.

"What was that, Granger?"

"Our butler…"

Draco's jaw dropped again. "You have _servants_?"

"Maybe…not many, of course! Just him…and a maid…and a gardener…and a cook. But don't you dare tell anyone! I don't want any of my friends to know I'm rich! People treat you differently when they know you have money."

"Yeah, I know…"

"Oh yeah…" They both stood there awkwardly for a moment, neither quite sure what to say. They weren't supposed to agree on anything!

Finally Hermione broke the silence. "You know, if my parents are going to really believe that we're friends, we're going to have to call each other by our first names."

"Her-my-oh-nee," Draco said slowly. "But that sounds funny."

Hermione rolled her eyes again. "_Draco_, I think we need to come to an agreement. Just for the next two weeks, let's abandon our differences and pretend we were never enemies. Let's forget about the house rivalry and the fact that I'm friends with Harry. When we go back to school we can be wizard enemies again, but for now, let's just be Muggle friends. Okay?"

She thought he would laugh and point out the absurdity of her suggestion, but he didn't. He grew quiet for a moment, thinking. "Okay." He nodded slowly. "Just don't tell anyone else about this."

Hermione smiled slightly. "Deal."

They walked in through the great French doors, and Hermione led Draco toward a beautiful marble staircase. At the top she turned right and led him down a long hall.

"That'll be your room, next to mine," she said, pointing to a tall, wooden door with a silver handle. Then she turned and walked into her room without another word.

It felt so good to be home! Hermione twirled around her huge room, taking it all in for the first time in months. She decided to unpack later, and turned towards her balcony. Flinging the door open, she stepped outside and took a deep breath. She loved her home.

Draco opened the door hesitantly. _This is silly, Draco. You're a Malfoy._ He stepped inside his room and his eyes bulged. It was as big as his own room, if not bigger. It couldn't be possible! He could hardly take it in, the tall canopy bed, the large fireplace with flames crackling, the balcony leading out to the hills outside.

Wanting a better look at the world outside the Grangers' house, he stepped out onto the balcony. Again, he was taken aback. Down below was a ginormous swimming pool surrounded by another beautiful garden that stretched off into the distance with cobbled stone paths and fountains scattered about it. Beyond that were tall, beautiful, rolling hills that stretched as far as the eye could see. The sky was bright and blue, and a thin breeze was blowing past.

Draco realized that these hills possessed their own kind of magic, something different than what was taught at Hogwarts. It was their enchanting beauty.

It was then that he noticed that he wasn't alone outside. On another balcony only a few feet away from his stood Hermione, her eyes closed and her hair blowing back lightly in the breeze. _She looks quite nice like that._

He immediately scolded himself for thinking anything of the sort. The truth was, if she weren't Muggle-born, he might have liked her. He had found her fascinating since the beginning of semester. Even though she wasn't that pretty and she was friends with Potter and Weasley, a crush had still been born. As soon as he realized that she was a Muggle-born, however, he lost all attraction to her. He could never love a Mudblood!

It took her a minute to notice he was there. "Oh…hi, Draco. Settled in?"

"More or less."

"Good. Would you like a tour?"

They met again outside their rooms and Hermione led Draco through the house, telling him what each Muggle object did. It amused her to see him so interested. It seemed so very un-Malfoyish of him.

Draco mentally cursed himself for his interest, but he couldn't help it. All his life he had been taught that Muggles didn't deserve his second thought and was never allowed near any of their things. This had never really bothered him until now. Now he was unwillingly interested, and he didn't know why.

At dinnertime, Hermione led him into the dining room where her parents were already seated. There was an awkward silence for a while as they ate, but finally Hermione's mom spoke.

"So, Draco, are your parents wizards too?"

He bristled at the question. Wasn't it obvious that he was pureblooded? He stopped himself however. He had made an agreement with that Granger, and he was going to keep it. And this meant good Malfoy manners.

"Yes ma'am."

She smiled, and he noticed how perfect and white her teeth were. That was related to dentistry, right? "So tell us about what life is like in a wizard home."

Draco didn't know where to start. There were so many differences between the life of a Muggle and the life of a wizard.

Somehow though, he found himself opening up and telling the Grangers all about his life as a Malfoy. It turned into a very pleasant conversation, and soon everyone was laughing and smiling.

"How did the two of you become friends? Hermione has never mentioned you before, Draco." Mr. Granger asked.

Draco and Hermione turned to each other with wide eyes. Hermione didn't want her parents to know that she and Draco were actually enemies, far from friends. They just wouldn't get it. So what should they say?

"Well, we're in lots of the same classes, and…" Hermione started, unsure of what to say.

"And we work together a lot, you know, we get partnered up for things and stuff," Draco jumped in.

"Anyway, we started talking while doing our schoool projects and stuff. Then we started hanging out I guess…"

"It took us a while, because we're in different houses, but just recently we became quite good friends!"

"Yeah. And Mal—Draco didn't have anywhere to go for Christmas, so I thought he could come here!"

"That's nice, isn't it?" Mrs. Granger smiled uncertainly. "Anyway, I was thinking tomorrow we could go shopping and get Draco some normal—er, _Muggle_ clothes? Does that sound nice?"

"Sounds fun, Mummy!" Seeing a Malfoy in Muggle clothes sounded fun any day.

Draco was speechless. They actually expected him to wear Muggle clothes?

* * *

_I can't believe I'm doing this_. Draco stepped out of the dressing room wearing his new "normal clothes." He felt so silly.

Hermione laughed aloud, causing her to receive a stern look from her mother.

"You look quite handsome, Draco," Mrs. Granger said, hoping to reassure him. It didn't work.

Hermione turned to look through the racks some more. "Ooh, how about this one?" She held up a red dress shirt with a golden-yellow strip around the edges.

"That's not funny, Gr—Hermione," Draco stated, but he couldn't help feeling slightly amused.

Hermione giggled. "Yeah, it kind of is."

He rolled his eyes, then stopped himself, an idea forming in his head. "I'll wear it if you wear Slytherin colors."

"You've got yourself a deal!"

As they left the store, laden down with new clothes, Mrs. Granger smiled to herself. Hermione seemed to have found herself a great friend whom she got along with quite well, however strange he may be.


	3. Chapter 3: Christmas

_Merry Christmas everyone! . /c5f4ce51909609d24ebadf82abe2 68e8/tumblr_mfh2rabyfA1rq6hufo1_ _

_Sorry it's taken me so long to update. I've been so busy with Holiday stuff I haven't had much time for writing. I am going to try to finish this story by the end of the week though. It will have a total of five chapters, the next one being a short one about what happens after Christmas as they get ready to go back to school, and some interesting discoveries. Chapter 5 will be a leap into the future where we see the results of this first Christmas at the Granger mansion and finally see some romance (yay!)._

_Hot Chocolate to Tale and Mystaplezer! I like to throw in little references to my other fandoms in my fanfiction, and my Mary Poppins quote was just one of many._

_Also, Mystaplezer, I really, really loved your ideas! Although I already have a plan for what's going to happen in my head and I can't really alter it, your ideas certainly got me thinking, and will probably end up affecting the final result._

_Anyway, I'll stop boring you now and let you get to the story. Enjoy!_

_-Penelope_

**Chapter 3: Christmas**

It was Christmas Eve, and everyone was in a festive mood. Christmas carols were spilling from an old record player as the Grangers and Draco decorated the tree.

It had been a week since Hermione and Draco had arrived. Eventually Draco had begun to fit in with the Grangers. He forced himself to respect the Muggle ways and be polite. To his astonishment, this gradually became easier and easier. His view of Muggles was slowly changing. He could no longer understand why he had ever thought they were so bad.

His opinion of Muggle-born wizards was changing too. He couldn't think of a single reason that made them worse than him. Hermione was living proof that they could be wonderful wizards, for it was true that she was the brightest witch of her age, even Draco had to admit it.

He was so confused. His mind was in a constant battle over what his parents had drilled into his brain and what the Grangers had unknowingly taught him.

And then there was Hermione. They were surprisingly getting along quite well. They had only gotten into one or two fights, and they usually ended up in a laughing fit as they realized how ridiculous they had been. Otherwise they would carry on for hours like old friends, talking and laughing or this or that. It made no sense to either of them. How could they be enemies one day and friends the next?

Tonight, however, they were putting their cares behind them and just having fun.

_Deck the halls with boughs of holly…_

The Grangers were singing along joyfully, while an amused Draco listened silently.

_Falalalalalalalala!_

"Come on, Draco!" Hermione grabbed his hands, and they twirled around the room together, singing and laughing as they went.

As the song ended, they stopped their awkward dance. It just so happened that she ended up wrapped in Draco's arms right as the music stopped, and they froze there for just a second. Then it hit them both just what they were doing and they both drew back, faces red.

A very awkward silence followed.

"Who wants eggnog?" Mrs. Granger said, trying to lighten the mood. What had just happened to her daughter? It appeared that she had a crush on this charming little wizard!

When she returned with a tray of eggnog and cookies, Draco and Hermione were sitting in a couple of armchairs next to the fireplace, talking again, though their conversation didn't seem to be as light and cheerful as before.

Draco accepted a glass of eggnog and took a large sip. He gagged, then forced himself to swallow it.

Hermione laughed at his face as he tried to force down the sugary beverage. "I hate it too. It's just too sweet!"

"Like liquid sugar!" They both laughed. "I have an idea." Draco disappeared from the room, returning a few minutes later with two bottles of butterbeer.

Hermione took one eagerly. "And where did this come from?" She raised an eyebrow.

"I always keep some around, just in case."

As they sipped their butterbeer, the awkwardness of before slipped away, and they returned to their cheerful and pointless conversation, full of giggles and smiles. Neither of them really cared that what they were doing made no sense. It was just a part of the deal they had made, and everything would return to normal when they went back to school. Right?

* * *

Hermione awoke to a loud banging on her door. "Go away. I'm trying to sleep!"

"Get up, Granger! It's Christmas!"

She laughed aloud. Forcing herself out of bed, she stepped into her slippers and threw on her dressing gown before making her way to the door. Outside was standing Draco, already dressed. She laughed again as she saw that he was wearing his Gryffindor-colored shirt.

"Somebody seems excited." She smirked, then realized that smirking was something he did and she didn't, and wiped it from her face.

"Surely even Hermione Granger lets her inner child run free on Christmas day?"

"If she has one, I'm sure she would."

"I saw it yesterday evening."

"That was a sugar high caused by an over dosage of Christmas cookies.

Draco began plotting. Time to find Granger's inner child.

"Where's your Slytherin dress?"

She rolled her eyes. "I'm beginning to think that Draco Malfoy has no inner child—he is one!"

He did that annoying thing with his eyebrows that was really attractive, but she could never tell if it meant he was expressing his hatred, trying to be annoying, or being flirtatious.

"Go put your dress on. Then we can go see what Santa brought us."

She gave in. She would have loved the dress if only it weren't green and silver. It was long and flowing and dark green with a silver-grey sash around the middle. Simple, yet pretty. She pulled her hair up as best she could and stepped out of her room again. Draco was waiting, leaning against a wall with his arms crossed.

It happened to him again. Even though it was still bushy, her hair was done as nicely as it could

be, and she looked quite lovely. Draco realized it too, and that was what shocked him. It didn't make any sense. He had only ever seen her in robes until this vacation. Maybe that was it. Or maybe it was her confident posture, most likely due to the fact that she no longer was carrying around a load of books. He couldn't put his finger on it, but there was something about her he had never noticed before—something he couldn't help but find attractive.

"Er…let's go down, shall we?"

They began to walk down the stairs, but were stopped midway by Mrs. Granger's squeals of delight. "Look at you two! So adorable! Let me get my camera."

Hermione and Draco looked at each other uncertainly. Hermione shrugged, and they turned to wait from her mother and her camera.

"Smile! No, no, get closer together."

_That's not awkward at all, Mum…_ Grudgingly, the two stepped closer together.

"Just a sec. It's not wanting to work properly." Mrs. Granger fiddled with the buttons on her camera.

_This is why you should just use magic_, Draco thought. Jokingly, he threw his arm around Hermione's shoulder, hoping to annoy her.

_Click!_ "There! Oh, it's so cute!" Mrs. Granger joyfully looked down at the picture she had just taken.

Hermione threw Draco's arm off of her and glared at him. He was already on his way to look at the picture, just as frightened as she, so she followed.

There they were, in their ridiculous clothing, both smiling still and looking pleased with each other, and Draco with his arm around Hermione as if he fancied her. They both gasped.

"Mum, you have to delete that picture!"

"But it's such a good one! I'll go show your father." She walked off in search of her husband.

Hermione spun around to face Draco. "I'm going to murder you, Malfoy!"

"Hey, I was only playing. Just don't let anyone see the photo."

Eyes still ablaze, Hermione turned and stomped off in the direction of the Christmas tree. She was not about to let him ruin her Christmas. All angry thoughts flew from her mind as she saw the tree aglow, heard the carols playing, and smelled the sweet scent of peppermint and evergreen. _Who cares about Malfoy? It's Christmas, have some fun!_

Draco walked in behind her, and her parents came over from looking at the photo.

"We had about twenty owls come in this morning addressed to you, Draco. We put all the packages over here." Mr. Granger motioned to a heaping pile of presents next to the tree.

"They made it here after all! I don't have to wait until I get to school!"

They spent the next half hour ripping open their presents, laughing like little children. Hermione got mostly books and quills and such, while Draco got just about everything a young wizard could want. Finally there were only two gifts left under the tree.

"This one is for you, Draco."

He took the box Hermione was holding out and opened it. Inside was a set of quills with long red feathers and gold tips. Between the tips and the feathers were small gold Gryffindor lion heads.

"Really?"

"Okay, hear me out. I think you would have made a wonderful Gryffindor. I've seen your courage and bravery, but you also possess that pride that Gryffindors do. In fact, you have a lot of the character traits that we Gryffindors do. Just don't let any Slytherins see you using those quills."

Draco laughed. "Fine, Granger. Even though the Sorting Hat didn't even consider putting me in Gryffindor. Here's your present."

Inside the little box he had given her was a necklace—a simple silver chain with a silver snake head pendant hanging from it. Its eyes were emeralds and its tongue was made of tiny rubies.

Hermione fingered it, looking it over. "Are they…are they real?"

With a laugh, he answered, "Of course. I thought it would look so nice with your dress." He smirked.

"And I suppose you're about to tell me that I could very well be in Slytherin?"

"I didn't think about it until now, but you could have been. You're clever, determined, and level-headed. You wouldn't just rush into a fight without a strategy, unlike most Gryffindors."

They both laughed for a minute trying to picture each other in the opposite houses.

"It really is beautiful. Thanks."

"You too. I really do like the quills."

Draco took the necklace and gently clasped it around her neck. A single word popped into his head: _amortentia_. He'd smelled it once before. Now he smelled the same sweet scent meeting his nose as it wafted up from her hair. It wasn't possible. This was Hermione Granger, the Mudblood! He must just be confused.

She turned her head around to face him. Their eyes met and something happened, a little spark exploded in both their hearts, something they couldn't explain. They both found themselves blushing and quickly turned away from each other. What was happening to them? A silence followed as they both sat there, wondering.

Suddenly, "Muggle music is so strange."

"Is it? What's wizard music like?"

"Yes, Draco. You should play us a wizard Christmas carol." Mrs. Granger said, turning toward the children.

Shrugging, Draco walked over to the grand piano in the corner of the vast room.

"You play piano, Draco?" Hermione walked over and stood next to the piano bench.

"Of course." He proceeded to start playing a very slow, almost mysterious sounding tune. It wasn't sad, indeed it had almost a cheerful feel at times. Hermione didn't know how to describe it, but it was one of the loveliest songs she had ever heard.

Draco didn't tell her what the song was really about. He didn't tell her that it was the lament of a lover as he thought of the only person he had ever loved, someone who hated him. He didn't tell her that the song got happier as the writer imagined himself and his love together, strolling through the snow or planting a kiss on each others lips, and that the song got more depressing as he realized it could never be. No, Draco didn't tell Hermione. He didn't tell her that he felt strangely like the lover.


	4. Chapter 4: Draco's Discovery

**Chapter 4: Draco's Discovery**

Draco couldn't sleep. Things were happening to him that made no sense. He decided to do what he always did at the Malfoy manor when he had trouble sleeping—explore.

In a house this big there were always rooms to be discovered. Though it was very Gryffindor-like of him, wandering through the old rooms and corridors always brought him joy.

He slipped out of his room and took a left, through a corridor, up some stairs, right turn again, and there was a door, nowhere else left to turn. He turned the doorknob and stepped inside.

It looked like an old study. There was a cluttered desk over by the window, and a bookshelf on the right wall. Sleepily and without much thought he began rummaging through the papers and things atop the desk. Letters and documents, all with the name Helen Granger printed across the top or signed at the bottom. On in particular caught his eye:

_The Last Will and Testament of Helen Marie Granger_

He began reading and his eyes grew wide. Helen Granger was apparently Hermione's great-aunt and she had left everything to Hermione. The house, the money—they were all Hermione's! Not her parents, but hers. He didn't know much about Muggle money, but even he could tell that the sum of her inheritance was incredibly high.

It all shocked him. The way she held herself, the way she acted, he never would have guessed that—

"Enjoying yourself, are you, Draco?"

"Hermione!" He turned around to face her, his face growing red. "How did you know I was in here?"

"I'm a light sleeper," she said calmly, but with a hint of anger to her tone. "I heard you getting up and decided to see what you were doing." She walked over to stand beside him at the desk and ran her hand over the document. "I didn't know we still had a copy of this old thing. We got rid of most of her things when we moved in."

She made eye contact with him for the first time since entering the room. "Well, are you happy now my big secret is out?"

Draco shook his head. "I'm not going to tell anyone, you know. I understand, in a way. Honestly, if I could start over now, I wouldn't want people to know I had money either. People act differently around you and only pretend to be your friend because of your money. I don't think I have a single true friend who actually cares about me." His voice had sped up and he was shaking slightly. He reached out and put a hand on the desk to steady himself.

"You have one." Hermione placed her hand on top of his comfortingly.

He smiled slightly. "Is that what we are now? Friends?"

"What do you think?"

"A Malfoy friends with a Muggle-born Gryffindor. That's certainly never been done before today."

Hermione grinned. "Is that a yes?"

"I think so. But let's not tell anyone about any of this. They wouldn't understand."

"You're right." Hermione nodded. "This whole thing will be our secret."

"Alright." Draco smiled. It wasn't his usual smirk or just a slight mouth twitch, it was a real smile, big and bright. Seeing it touched Hermione.

They sat there for a moment, both deep in thought.

"Well?" Hermione asked suddenly.

"Well what?"

"Surely you're wondering about Great-aunt Helen."

"Oh…yeah, I kind of am."

"Oh, where to start? Well, the house and everything have been in the family for ages. She had been the last one to inherit it, and due to the fact that she never married and her brother, my grandfather, had only one son, her options for choosing an heir were very limited. She always disliked Father, even when he was just a boy. Even he's not quite sure why. She didn't approve at all of him becoming a dentist or marrying my mum. Thus she disowned him, and my parents forgot about the fortune and this old house.

"I was seven when she died. I'd never even met her before. We were contacted and summoned to the reading of the will. It astonished all of us. Why would she just leave it all to my? I suppose it was because I was the only other relative she could leave it all to, but it was still a surprise.

"It all just happened so fast. One day I was just an average schoolgirl; the next I was a millionaire. Suddenly we were living in this mansion and our lifestyle had changed. I vowed to myself, however, that I wouldn't let it change me. I wouldn't let it affect who I was inside.

"Now I just try to act normal and hope that Ron and Harry never find out."

Again there was silence. Draco wasn't sure what to say. She had just told him something she hadn't told anyone else—not even her two best friends—and he didn't know how to react. Finally, "I envy you."

Hermione was taken aback. "Why?"

"You have everything I do: the money, the house, the servants, the wealth. But you have so much more as well. You have two wonderful friends who truly care about you and a family that...that loves you. You're a good person, you actually deserve it all. But me, I've made all the wrong choices. And I don't have that friendship, no one…but you, who really cares. I've been so foolish, all my life!"

"It's not too late, Draco. You could go back now and be different. We really have a lot in common, you know."

He shook his head sadly. "No, I couldn't."

"Why not?"

He didn't know what to tell her. His father was his biggest reason. He wouldn't approve and would very well make life miserable for Draco. He could be abusive, and Draco didn't want to risk it. But of course he couldn't tell Hermione that, she'd worry too much.

"We all have our place in the world. That's not mine. Still…you've made me realize some things, Hermione, that I'd never realized before. I've changed."

"I think we both have." She hugged him like she would Ron or Harry. "I'll always be there for you, you know. It's what friends are for."

"Thank you, for everything."

* * *

_That summer Draco came to visit again. Then he spent the following Christmas at the Grangers, telling his parents he was at Hogwarts while telling his so-called friends he was at home. They began to spend as much time as possible together until Hermione realized that he was as much her best friend as Ron and Harry. _

_Draco learned to overlook his hatred of Muggles as the Grangers became a second family to him. They truly appreciated him for who he was and weren't always wanting him to change. He often found himself wishing his own parents were like that, though he would never admit it. _

_He held Hermione in very high esteem. He always felt that she was the only one willing to look past his outward appearance and find what was inside. She was his only ever true friend._

_Hermione thought about him often as she lay in bed at night. How could she help him? How could she see more of him? It was a day in the early December of their fifth year that it hit her. She thought of Draco in a different way than she thought of Harry and Ron. She had often wondered, but had always shoved the thought aside. Now she realized that it was true. She was certain that she loved Draco Malfoy._

_Draco also was experiencing these sorts of feelings. They had started back in their fourth year, however. The night of the Yule Ball was the first Christmas in years they hadn't spent together. The whole night he thought of her, imagined himself dancing with her. He slipped off into a fantasy: him holding her tightly in his arms, her proclaiming her love for him, and them snogging in the moonlight. The thoughts startled him, and he cursed himself for even thinking them. Then he really thought about it and realized he'd known for a while, he had just never been completely sure. Now he was certain that he loved Hermione Granger._

_They were both lost, unsure of what to do. They would never dream that they were both experiencing these strange thoughts, these new feelings. _


End file.
